Sanchar Saathi App Mandate
02.12.2025
Sanchar Saathi App Mandate
Context
The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has directed that from March 2026 onward, all smartphones sold in India must come pre-installed with the government’s Sanchar Saathi application.
About the Initiative
Background:
• Launched in 2023, Sanchar Saathi was initially created as a portal to help users identify mobile connections linked to their identity and combat scam calls.
• The mandate aims to protect citizens from counterfeit devices and provide an accessible mechanism for reporting telecom-related misuse.
Government Objective:
• Prevent circulation of non-genuine handsets.
• Strengthen user protection through monitoring tools and fraud-reporting mechanisms.
Key Provisions and Features
The Mandate:
• The Sanchar Saathi app must be pre-installed on all new smartphones sold after March 2026.
• The app cannot be disabled, removed, or restricted by the user.
• Phone manufacturers are required to ensure the app remains functional.
User Functionalities:
• Device Authenticity Check: Users can verify whether a phone’s IMEI number is genuine, helping detect cloned or illegally altered devices.
• Connection Monitoring: Allows users to view all mobile numbers currently linked to their identity documents (such as Aadhaar).
• Lost or Stolen Device Management: Users can remotely block, freeze, or disable a lost or stolen device and prevent SIM misuse.
• Fraud Reporting (Chakshu Portal): The app integrates the Chakshu portal for reporting suspicious telecom fraud. Reports filed here are not treated as FIRs; separate police complaints are needed for criminal action.
4. Cess and Surcharge Mechanisms
Context
Cess and Surcharge are additional levies imposed over base taxes to raise Union revenue. They function as “tax on tax,” allowing targeted or flexible resource generation without expanding the divisible pool shared with States.
Constitutional Framework on Revenue Sharing
• Proceeds of both Cess and Surcharge are excluded from State sharing.
• The 80th Amendment revised Article 270 to exclude these levies from the divisible pool.
• Enables the Centre to raise extra funds outside Finance Commission transfers.
Key Features of Cess
Purpose and Usage:
• Levied for a specific purpose only (health, education, security).
• Revenue is earmarked and must be used exclusively for the stated goal.
• Examples: Health Cess, Education Cess, Infrastructure Cess.
Application:
• Imposed on all taxpayers, making it broad-based.
Key Features of Surcharge
Purpose and Usage:
• Not linked to any specific objective; supports general expenditure.
• Offers high fiscal flexibility.
Application:
• Levied on higher-income groups (e.g., above ₹50 lakh).
• Progressive in nature due to its selective application.
Contextual Application: Taxation of “Sin Goods”
Use of High Taxation:
• High GST and duties discourage consumption of tobacco, gutka, liquor, etc.
• Example: 40% GST on select products.
Policy Dilemma:
• These goods impose significant health and social costs.
• Bans encourage black markets and unsafe substitutes.
• High taxes become the preferred deterrent despite inelastic demand.
Conclusion
Cess and Surcharge help the Union raise targeted or flexible revenue while bypassing the divisible pool, shaping fiscal federalism. High taxation on sin goods serves as a practical deterrent balancing public health goals with enforcement challenges.
5. Heart-Resilient Urban Planning
Context
Rapid and unplanned urbanization is contributing to rising public health risks, particularly Cardio-Vascular Mortality (CVM). CVM is now the leading cause of death in urban India, with rates nearly double those of rural areas.
Problem Areas
• Severe Pollution: High PM2.5 levels trigger heart disease, hypertension, and stroke.
• Lack of Green Spaces: Limited tree cover increases heat stress and elevates cardiovascular risk.
• Lifestyle Risks: Urban environments promote sedentary lifestyles, chronic stress, and unhealthy food habits (including repeated use of reheated oils).
• Unequal Healthcare Access: Hospital distribution follows market logic, concentrating facilities where purchasing power and land value are high rather than in underserved, high-need areas.
Solutions for Heart-Resilient Planning
- Active Mobility
• Prioritise walkability through well-designed, shaded footpaths, cycle lanes, and safe pedestrian crossings.
• Encourages daily physical activity, reducing hypertension, obesity, and diabetes — key contributors to CVM.
- Green Infrastructure
• Expand urban forests, tree-lined streets, and public parks.
• Green cover lowers ambient temperature, reduces pollution exposure, and improves cardiovascular outcomes.
- Mixed-Use Development
• Integrate residential, commercial, and recreational zones to reduce commute times.
• Minimises car dependence, lowers emissions, and promotes healthier daily routines through active living.
- Healthy Ecosystems
• Strengthen clean, reliable public transport to reduce pollution and travel stress.
• Support local markets offering affordable, heart-healthy foods and regulate unsafe practices such as repeated oil reheating.
Conclusion
Heart-resilient urban planning requires transforming cities into healthier, greener, and more equitable environments. By embedding active mobility, green infrastructure, mixed-use layouts, and accessible healthy ecosystems into urban design, India can significantly reduce cardiovascular mortality and build cities that support long-term public health.